


It Must Be Five O’Clock Somewhere

by NikkiKaji



Series: Apex Legends: One-Shot Prompt Edition [3]
Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Angst, Canon Non-Binary Character, Drunken Confessions, F/M, Heartbreak, Identity Reveal, M/M, Multi, Rare Pairings, Rejection, Secret Identity, Stabbing, Two Shot, Unrequited Love, Was supposed to be a one shot but i got carried away LOL
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-02-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:09:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22471609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NikkiKaji/pseuds/NikkiKaji
Summary: Part 3.1 of my "Apex Legends: One-Shot Prompt Edition" Series.Prompt: "All she wanted was the answer, but she had no idea how much she would hate it. It must be five o’clock somewhere."
Relationships: Bloodhound/Wraith | Renee Blasey, Crypto | Park Tae Joon/Mirage | Elliott Witt, Mirage | Elliott Witt & Wraith | Renee Blasey
Series: Apex Legends: One-Shot Prompt Edition [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1614655
Comments: 3
Kudos: 24





	1. The Apocalypse

She had planned the whole situation out. After triumphantly claiming the title of Apex Champion once again alongside her teammates Mirage and Bloodhound, Renee invited the trickster and the tracker to have a few drinks with her in celebration. Honestly, none of them had been out for drinks in a hot minute, and she knew that they were bound to have a good time at Talos’ most popular bar: The Apocalypse.

~~~

Bloodhound didn’t know how to approach the rendezvous they’d been invited to later that night. Though they never did anything personally threatening, the other legends still kept their distance from the tracker. Perhaps it was due to the fact that they kept a knife collection in their room on the dropship, despite there being a “no weapons on the dropship” policy… Either way, this was the first time someone actually asked them to hang out after game hours, and now they were pacing their room trying to come up with a plan.

The last thing Bloodhound wanted to do was make a fool out of themselves or their fellow teammates. After all, The Apocalypse was a very popular bar, which meant that a bunch of the people there would most likely recognize them. And by “them,” Bloodhound was referring to Renee and Elliot, since no one had ever actually seen their face before. That’s where two choices came up:

The first choice was showing up to the bar in their normal attire. That would probably be the safest thing to do, but it would probably cause the hunter to stick out like a sore thumb amongst the rest of the crowd, who would most likely be wearing casual, comfortable clothing. Also, that would leave Bloodhound unable to actually _drink_ anything, which would ruin the whole point of going in the first place.

The second choice would be showing up and blending in with the rest of the crowd, but that option...scared Bloodhound, and they weren’t easily scared by things. It’s not like anyone would recognize them, besides _maybe_ the old norse accent. Still, there had to be way more people that lived on Talos with an old norse accent other than them. There was also the fact that they’d be hanging out with two other legends in the apex games, and some people might’ve put two and two together. That couldn’t happen.

Then, a third option came into mind, but it couldn’t fully form inside of Bloodhound’s mind before their thoughts were interrupted by the buzzing of their phone. They looked at the messenger ID, and saw the name “Wraith” blinking on the screen. Swiftly, they unlocked the phone and put it up to their ear, quickly placing their voice filter above their mouth

“Halló?”

“Hey, Bloodhound!” Renee’s voice chirped from the other side of the phone, “Umm...sorry to call you so suddenly. I know you’re probably busy,”

“Just getting ready for the rendezvous later. I didn’t believe it’d be this difficult for me to prepare…”

There was a short pause, followed by a sigh on the other line.

“Listen, I thought about it, and...maybe it’s not a good idea for you to join us tonight.”

Bloodhound didn’t say anything, and Renee continued, “I mean, it’s nothing personal against you, Hound. This place just might not be the right environment for you, and I feel like we need to slowly ease you out of your comfort zone,” another pause, “Also, I planned on confessing to Elliot tonight. I would hate for things to get awkward and make you feel like a third wheel. I’m sorry…”

Bloodhound’s heart dropped, and a lump formed at the back of their throat as they quickly muted the phone. They couldn’t believe what they were hearing—no, they actually _could_ believe it, they just didn’t _want_ to. Today was a day that the hunter had been secretly awaiting, but they didn’t expect everything to go downhill so quickly.

Wraith, the woman they found themselves slowly falling for, had confessed her affection for someone else. And it was **killing** them on the inside. It killed them faster than they’d ever killed an opponent in the arena.

Bloodhound unmuted the phone, smiling weakly to themselves, “It is alright, Félagi. I pray that you and Elliot have a good time. Be sure to let me know how everything goes.”

“Thanks, Bloodhound. I know I don’t say this enough, but you’re awesome. I’ll see you around.”

_Oh, you will alright…_

When the line cut off, Bloodhound’s hands were shaking with both distress and anger. In a spiral of rage, they withdrew one of the knives from their shelf and pitched it at the wall in a swift motion. The blade flew across the room and made its mark on the wall across from where Bloodhound was standing, sticking outwards from the now impaled wood. The hunter was taking in deep breaths, trying to calm themselves down. After a few seconds of absolute silence, the third option Bloodhound came up with earlier popped back into their head, and it was the only one they had left. Yeah, it was probably a really stupid decision for Bloodhound to make, but at the time, they didn’t really care anymore. The hunter, after inhaling one more big breath of air, took whatever remaining courage they had left in their body and left out of their room and to the dressing hall.

_Allfather, give me strength…_

~~~

_“Damn,”_ Renee thought to herself, _“Maybe this place is too big of a step out of my comfort zone too…”_

The Apocalypse was packed to the brim with a variety of different lifeforms, from regular looking people to regular looking robots, as well as robots that _looked_ like people. Hell, there were even some half-human, half...creature type of characters around the place. Though, Renee honestly couldn’t tell if things like the elf ears and flyer wings on a few of the patrons’ bodies were real or fake.

The voidwalker had been around dozens of strangers before. After all, the games were always obtaining new legends, plus she attended post-game interviews and meet-and-greets almost every month, which forced her to break out of the hard shell she had at the beginning of the first season. However, this felt _different_. Different in a good way, of course. It was nice to get out of the dropship and just enjoy an evening around a bunch of new people.

When she looked over at Elliot, she could easily read the excitement and amusement on her friend’s face, like a kid in a candy shop. His smile was so genuine and bright, it was no wonder she had fallen for the trickster in the first place.

The two legends took their seats at the bar, leaning against the marble counter and looking up at the digital menu display above the bartender’s workspace. Most of the workers there were, what Wraith assumed, MRVN bots. They had a similar structure to Pathfinder, but looked very polished and fancy compared to the dull looking bot that competed in the games. Still, she kept their designs in the back of her mind to suggest to the costume design team when she got back.

“Welcome, lovely guests,” the bartender greeted, cleaning a glass as he turned to face the two, “Our special tonight is the Sunset Shipwreck, made with champagne, pink lemonade, lemon juice, and Talos sea salt.”

“That doesn’t sound too bad. I’ll get one, please,” Renee answered. Secretly, she just didn’t want to spend too much time looking through the wide selection of drinks. The sooner they started drinking, the easier her whole plan would go along.

“I think I’ll get the Tropical Eclipse; it’s got an interesting look to it, don’tcha think?” Elliot requested.

“It is a favorite amongst many of our patrons indeed. Your drinks will be ready in approximately 3 minutes and 12 seconds, but times may fluctuate due to the increase of customers today. We appreciate your patience,” the bartender bot answer, “In the meantime, please accept these free appetizers.”

A small, steaming hot plate of boneless wings appeared from within the table, Renee and Elliot both jumping slightly from the square opening in the marble. The trickster rubbed his hands together, picking up one of the wings with his fingers, “Don’t mind if I do.”

~~~

_“Stop drinking so much, you idiot!”_

_“You’re getting carried away…”_

_“You’re putting yourself in danger. Stop it!”_

Only 30 minutes had gone by, and Renee was already on her fifth glass of the alcoholic beverage she couldn’t even remember the name of at this point. The voices from the void had turned into a distant echo at the back of her mind, which had been pestering her about her alcohol intake for the longest time. Maybe it wasn’t the best idea to drink so much after not doing it for so long, but she was enjoying the night with Elliot so much that she didn’t even think about it. 

Elliot, on the other hand, seemed to be taking his time with his drinks, only on his second glass. Renee looked over at the man sitting next to her, his appearance alone making her blush. Elliot still appeared to be somewhat composed, but there was an obvious droopiness in his eyes and reddish blush formed on his face

Then, Elliot noticed her staring, but she didn’t care enough to look away.

“Are...you okay, Renee? Maybe we should slow down on the drinking a bit,” the trickster said, finally gulping down the last of his third glass. Renee sighed, suddenly wrapping her hands around Elliot’s arm and leaning over on him.

“Oh, c’mon, we’re supposed to be having fuuuun,” Renee groaned into the side of the trickster’s arm, “We never get to go out like this, and with the earnings from the last game, we can- *hicc* -drink as much as we want.”

Elliot sighed, gently pulling his arm away and patting the voidwalker on the head, which made her feel warm inside, “Well, take it easy, okay? Let’s just stop for a minute and talk-”

For some reason, when Renee heard the word “talk,” she immediately went for the kill.

“I love you, Elliot.”

~~~

Elliot turned to Renee, wide eyed and surprised. Where the hell did _that_ come from? He figured that it was probably the alcohol speaking instead of the voidwalker herself, but damn did it make him feel awkward. Then, he broke into a chuckle, “Hey, I mean, I love ya too, Renee-”

“So, you’ll go out with me then?” the woman chirped.

Again, Elliot froze, thinking of what to say. Unfortunately, his brain was processing a bit slower than usual, “Umm...w-well you see, Renee, I-...ah...nevermind, actually. Can we talk about this later? Maybe when you’re more sober?”

~~~

If there was anything Renee ever wanted in her life, it was answers. Answers about her past, answers about the voices in her head, answers about the void and all of the different dimensions they held. Even if it wasn’t directly related to her, she hated it when people weren’t straightforward about who they were or what they knew or how they felt. If you truly wanted to piss the voidwalker off, get her attention and cut the conversation short with a quick, “Nevermind,” or, “It’s not important.”

The two legends had moved closer to the entrance of the bar to talk, but assured the bartender that they’d be back to pay for their drinks. Elliot looked annoyed as hell, leaning against one of the walls with his arms crossed and avoiding eye contact.

“Just stop and think about it for a minute, Renee. I-I mean...we’re like family! Don’t you think maybe-?”

Renee moved her face closer to the trickster’s, causing him to move back a little in response, “No, Elliot. If you think I’m pulling this out of my ass or something, I planned the whole confession thing beforehand. Even Hound agreed not to show up so I could do it. I-I love you, so if you feel the same, just tell me.”

The voices were back once again, this time louder than usual.

_“Wraith, what the hell are you doing!?”_

_“Are you fucking insane!?”_

_“Danger! Move!”_

Perhaps her past made Renee a little _too_ straightforward and demanding. Or maybe it was the alcohol affecting her brain’s processing power. I mean, who wouldn’t want to be told the truth if the person in question knew it? That’s why she always tried to push people for answers. 

However, in that moment, the voidwalker really wished she hadn’t.

“I-I’m sorry, Renee, I just have my eyes set on someone else right now… I hope you can understand,”

Those words rang through Renee’s head like a lyric from a tragic love song. The world around her seemed to freeze in time, and she could feel her breathing stop, as if she’d been thrown into the void without her dimensional travel equipment. After everything they’d been through—the laughing, the tears—she couldn’t believe how easily Elliot was able to throw those feelings away for another person. Someone that wasn’t _her_.

She closed her eyes tight, her nails clawing deep at the inside of her palm, almost enough to draw blood. She then took in a sharp breath.

“Go…”

“Renee-...”

“I said **GO** ! Get the **FUCK** away from me!” Renee took her kunai from her pocket and pointed it at Elliot’s throat in a swift motion. Oh yeah, she was definitely over the edge of only being tipsy at that point. She’d screamed so loud that nearly the entire bar went silent and turned to look at her, the expressions both confused and horrified. Elliot looked as if he’d seen a ghost, but took no time sliding past the sharp blade that was pointed at him and rushing out the door. Before Renee could even process what had fully happened, the trickster had disappeared like he’d performed his vanishing act.

For a few seconds, she just stood there staring at the wall where her fellow legend once stood. Once the attention seemed to no longer be on her, she slowly retrieved her knife back into her pocket and made her way back to her seat at the counter. The MVRN bartender turned around from his workspace to face the woman as she ate another boneless wing and downed yet another glass of Sunset Shipwreck.

“Your friend did not pay for their drinks…”

Renee groaned, lifting her glass towards the robot’s face, “Just put em on my tab...and hit me with something stronger, while you’re at it. I- *hicc* …-can go all fucking night.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, soooo this ended up being way longer than I expected. Wraith x Bloodhound ended up being one of those rare pairs I liked for...some reason I can't really explain. In Apex, I tend to have multiple ships with the same character, so I still ship Wraith with other characters too, like Wattson. Anyways, this is getting a part two because I want to expand on Bloodhound's importance and reappearance later on, and Wraith deserves a happy ending (so does Mirage, but we'll get to that later~).


	2. The Savior

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Renee is drunk out of her mind, Bloodhound has everyone on their hit list, and Mirage knows a lot of secrets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this chapter got longer than I intended it to be, because I tried to just fit as much as I could into it. Just, be sure to check the end of chapter notes, okay? Enjoy~ :3

This was probably the most vulnerable Bloodhound ever allowed themselves to be in their entire life. Walking around like this in public was so unimaginable and surreal that the hunter almost turned around and ran back to their room as soon as they left out of it. Getting out of the Syndicate Headquarters was by far the hardest part of this whole operation, since cameras were set up on damn near every wall in the building. Luckily, they were able to get help from a certain hacker, who had decided to chip in in exchange for the hunter making sure Elliot got back to the HQ safe and sound, “I’m not really concerned about him passing out drunk—he had his own bar after all—but there’s no telling what kind of shit will go down at a bar like that. Make sure none of the guys or girls in that place lay a  _ finger _ on him, got it?”

Bloodhound kept their eye on almost everyone and everything as they wandered down the streets of Talos’ main city, Astra. It was much different that World’s Edge- so lively and futuristic-like. The creation of this city was all thanks to Hammond Robotics, which Bloodhound couldn’t help but feel was going to lead to something terrible with everything going on recently. But the best part about the whole experience was the wide arrangement of different lifeforms that existed without having to be judged for their appearance. The hunter began to feel happy that they’d chosen to not go out in their regular legend outfit. For once, they felt...normal.

Then, thoughts of what Renee said entered their mind, their legs moving on their own as they became lost in thought.

_ “Renee is likely having a good time...I don’t want to ruin this for her. Am I just hurting her for showing up? Am I hurting myself by showing up? What if she-?” _

Bloodhound’s thoughts are cut short when they bump into another person, stumbling backwards and falling flat on their ass. The impact from hitting the ground nearly knocked the wind out of them, which is something they did not expect considering the amount of shit they’ve been hit with in the games. 

_ Is this what it’s like wearing regular attire? Oh, fyrir helvítis sakir... _

“Hey, I’m so sorry about that. Let me help you up.”

Bloodhound’s eyes shot open. They  _ recognized  _ that voice. And that sure as hell wasn’t a good sign. The hunter looked up at the hand that was reaching out to them, seeing the face of the person they’d run into.

_ ELLIOT!? What the hell…? _

In order to avoid suspicions, Bloodhound grabbed Elliot’s hand and stood back up. The hunter felt as if their heart was going to pop out of their chest at that moment. It was such a weird situation to be in for them. Obviously, Elliot wouldn’t recognize who they were unless they screwed up big time, but it still made them feel scared shitless, “T-Takk fyrir, Elliot; I should’ve been watching where I was going...”

Elliot raised an eyebrow, looking the hunter up and down closely. Bloodhound froze and held their breath. Then, the trickster shook their head and sighed.

“S-Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare. You just seem kind of fali- fameri-...like I know you or something, but I’ve never seen anyone that looks like you. It’s kinda weird,” the trickster paused, “Hey, how do you know my name?”

_ Shit…! _

“I...watch the apex games a lot! I know everything about you guys. Big fan of yours, Elliot,” Bloodhound was proud of themselves for how quickly they came up with such a believable lie, giving themselves a mental pat on the back.

“Right, of course, duh… Sorry, I-I’m kinda having a bad night…”

Bloodhound’s ears perked up, “A bad night, you say? What happened?”

Elliot laughed unenthusiastically, scratching the back of his head. That wasn’t a good sign.

“My friend confessed her feelings to me tonight, and when I rejected her, she kinda...flipped out. I didn’t want to upset her anymore, so I left. Now that I’m thinking about it, maybe I shouldn’t have left her there by herself… She was just drinking so much, and didn’t want to leave. Then she, like, threatened me with her little knife thingy. I just don’t think it’s a good idea for me to go back. I’m sure one of the MRVN bots will be looking out for her.”

_...WHAT!? _

Bloodhound accidentally lost their cool and grabbed Elliot by his shirt, pulling him forward aggressively, “Are you insane!?  _ Helvítis álfvit _ i, Elliot!” Oh great, now the accent was  _ really _ coming out, “Hyeon was right calling you an idiot… I do not care if she was mad at you; you don’t leave a girl totally plastered by herself in a fucking bar,  **ESPECIALLY** not Renee! Don’t you know the kind of creeps that hang out in overpopulated cities like this!?”

Elliot’s pupils slightly dilated as he stared back at the angered hunter, a quiet gasp escaping his mouth as he put the pieces of the puzzle in place.

“Bloodhound…?”

Upon hearing their legend name, Bloodhound quickly ungripped Elliot’s shirt and let the trickster back on his feet, their hands shaking. They felt like running back to the Syndicate Headquarters and locking themselves back up in their room, never to leave the quietness of the old wooden walls ever again.

No, that would be selfish…

Instead, they remembered Renee, and what could happen if they didn’t hurry to her rescue.

Bloodhound ran past Elliot swiftly, bumping shoulders and nearly knocking the other legend over. The identity crisis could be dealt with another time. At that moment, it wasn’t as important.

_ Damn it… If she gets hurt, it’s Elliot’s neck I’m coming for first. Sorry, Park, might not be able to keep that promise after all. _

~~~

Renee was passed out at the counter, her arm lying on the cold marble with an empty glass in her hand. Her face was buried in her other arm, silent weeps leaving her mouth that thankfully no one else could hear. Well, no one except the voices. They didn’t really bother her unless she was in danger, so not even they were willing to lend an ounce of comfort in her lowest moment.

_ Fuck the voices, fuck Elliot, fuck everyone… _

The voidwalker was so out of it that she couldn’t even bother to lift her head and ask for another drink. She’d lost count of how many she’d chugged, or how much time had passed since her last one, but the throbbing headache was an indication that it was more than what she should’ve had.

_ “You’re in their sights.” _

_ “Danger! Move!” _

_ “It’s not safe there!” _

Wraith groaned in annoyance against her arm.

_ For the love of god, would you guys shut the fuck up-!? _

Her thoughts were interrupted after feeling a rough rub against her thigh.

Renee immediately jumped from the touch, shooting her head up and being blinded by the lights of the screens in front of her. Her head throbbed, and she grabbed at her temple and groaned in pain. Why the hell was it so bright all of a sudden? And who the  _ hell _ had the audacity to touch her leg like that? She looked around, and realized that everyone had already left for the night. Not even the MRVN bartender was at his workstation anymore. But now, she was under the shadow of an unfamiliar male figure, who took the empty seat next to her.

_ You’ve gotta be kidding me… _

“It’s a little late for a pretty lady like you to still be here, don’t you think? It can get dangerous after 12…” one of the men whispered against the side of Renee’s face. His breath reeked of vodka, a smell that made her nearly pass out on the spot. She quickly pulled her face away, scoffing in disgust as the jerked her leg away.. In response, the man aggressively wrapped nearly his entire hand around her thigh, his fingers grazing towards a part of her body they had no business being near. Why wasn’t she fighting back? It’s like she wanted to, but couldn’t find the strength in her to act. Maybe it was the alcohol…

...Or maybe it was the guilt. The guilt of putting all of that pressure on her best friend at once, then threatening him in a public bar with a kunai to his throat when he didn’t give her the answer she wanted. Yeah, because that’s definitely what friends do. 

“You’re that legend, Wraith, right?” the man whispered against Renee’s soft, pale skin, “God damn, I thought seeing you in that outfit on tv was hot enough, but now…look at you. All dolled up and flustered. It’s an honor to have you stay after hours at my establishment.”

The man moved his left arm around Renee’s body, wrapping it around her stomach area and pulling her closer to him, “Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to take good care of you.”

_ Fucking damn it, no! _

It took all of Renee’s strength to pull away from the man’s grasp around her. She stumbled off of her stool, leaning onto the bar counter for support when her feet hit the ground. Her head was still pounding, and she could barely make out the sights in front of her that were more than 5 feet away. Everything was just a painful, alcohol-and-guilt induced blur as she turned and took a step towards the entrance, which thankfully was right behind where she chose to sit.

After a few struggled, wobbly steps, she could feel the man wrap his hand around her arm, pulling her closer to him. Without giving it a second thought, she pulled her kunai from her pocket in a not-so-swift motion, but was unable to accomplish anything with it. Instead, the man grabbed her wrist and squeezed it tightly, causing the voidwalker to flinch and drop the weapon. He forcefully pushed her against the wall near the door, twisting her arms behind her body roughly as she let out a pained yelp.

“I  _ own _ this fucking place, girly. You should learn how to respect someone in their own home,” he grumbled against her ear, “What if I tell the Syndicate about our little encounter tonight, hmm?”

“You mean the part where you touch me without consent?”

“The part where you get wasted at my establishment and threaten me with a weapon that’s not supposed to be in here in the first place.”

_ Shit,  _ he was right about that. The door clearly did have a “no weapons policy” sign outside of it. Renee had gotten so used to ignoring the shitty rule after being on the dropship for so long with weapons, she ignored it whenever she saw the warning sign. It still didn’t give this fucker the right to do whatever he wanted, but…

“You’ve been a bad girl, but if you behave, perhaps the Syndicate won’t hear about it.”

Maybe this is what she deserved. She  _ had  _ been a bad girl—a bad friend—to Elliot, to Bloodhound, to herself. This was just the punishment.

Renee’s thoughts were cut off when she heard the bells of the front door ring, and the metal hinges swinging open.

In the doorway stood a person—man or woman, she couldn’t really tell. Their figure was very beautifully built, fitting well in those long black jeggings, camo-patterned drawstring vest, black tank top, and steel-toed boots they were wearing. Their hair was a mousy brown color, short and flowy, only barely reaching their shoulders. And their eyes—they were an icy blue that could pierce the soul, which sent chills down Renee’s spine like she’d landed at the Epicenter without a body armor. 

God damn, whoever they were, they were  _ gorgeous _ …

~~~

Bloodhound quickly approached The Apocalypse entrance, nearly out of breath from how much they’d ran. From the looks of it, the place was just about to close up, since there were no cars outside and no people standing around nearby. 

The lights were still on inside the building, and the hunter could still see two figures standing near the entrance, one pinned up against the wall right by the main by the other, who was clearly larger and stronger. They did not see Bloodhound approach the glass door, who stood there and stared for a split second, trying to determine if they should enter or not. It didn’t take long for them to realize that the one being pinned was a woman, who’s medium-length, midnight black hair was covering most of their face. Though they could not see their face, Bloodhound could already determine who it was, and pushed through the door without a second thought.

The man that was pinning Renee to the wall immediately shot his gaze up to look at the hunter, who didn’t move as the door shut behind them. He grunted, not moving his hands. Bloodhound curled their fingers into a fist, beginning to shake in anger but trying to keep their cool.

“What are you doing?”

“None of your fucking business; can’t you see we’re closed? Get outta here before I kick you out my goddamn self.”

_ Is this guy serious? _

“I’m going to ignore that threat, pig,” Bloodhound’s voice was low and rough as they took a step forward, glaring at the man, “Get your hands off of her, or I will make you  _ regret  _ you had them to begin with. I don’t fucking play when it comes to human decency, and I don’t care who the hell you think you are. You’re a real  _ bitch _ , you know that? Preying on women who are totally out of it and can’t fight back. You must feel really powerful and mighty, don’t you? Well, you aren’t, and this is going to be the last time you  _ ever _ fucking do this to  _ anyone;  _ I swear to the allfather _. _ ”

The man let out a devious, chuckle, “You’ve got a real dirty mouth, don’t you? Maybe I should shut it up with something…”

His hands left Renee’s body, and she collapsed to the ground in almost an instant, trying to lean against the wall for support to lessen the impact from the fall. Bloodhound didn’t have enough time to go support the other legend before the bar owner charged at them, fist raised and aiming for the face. They quickly moved out the way, grabbing the man’s left wrist and twisting it  _ hard _ . He let out a pain grunt in response, using his free arm to get a punch at Bloodhound’s nose. 

The hunter sucked a sharp breath of air through their teeth, trying not to fall backwards. The bar owner struck again, this time drawing blood from Bloodhound’s nose as they hit the wall their back was to, causing one of the nearby paintings to fall down. They immediately got back up, but the man pinned them to the wall with both of his hands around both of their arms. The hunter struggled, kicking the man in the stomach with those steel toe boots, which caused him to drop them in an instant and stumble backwards. Behind them, they hear a familiar, weird noise, followed by a tug on their arm.

It was Renee, who was standing next to the entrance of a portal into the void. She was staring at the bar owner at first, but then looked Bloodhound straight into their eyes.

“Follow me, we’ll be safe.”

They didn’t question it, grabbing Renee’s hand and jumping into the dark purple and black void, the yell of an angry bar owner fading as the entrance closed behind them.

Bloodhound wasn’t scared when they jumped into the void alongside Renee. They’d done it a million times before during the games, whether they were on the same team or against each other. It was usually the same process: the world became a streak of dark purple and grey, and they were about 100 meters away within a few seconds with no side effects.

However, this time it was...different. The void felt cold and dark, and it didn’t feel like they were moving at all. Perhaps this was the effect of not being in their heavy hunter outfit, but Bloodhound couldn’t help but feel panicked when they lost footing of whatever floor they were standing on. There really was no floor, just space and a quiet noise. Renee was still with them, holding their hand, and it brought them a small warmth within the cold emptiness.

“I-...I’m sorry. I should’ve created another exit sooner, but my head is killing me. I haven’t had to use my powers like this since…”

Renee’s voice trailed off, letting out a heavy sigh and fixing her gaze in front of her. She raised her free hand, her eyes glowing white as the space in front of her twisted and turned, another portal opening. Even though Bloodhound had absolutely no capability of movement, the voidwalker was able to easily float forward and lead the both of them through the portal. Then, the gravitational pull of the planet hit the hunter like a truck, nearly knockin the wind out of them for the second time tonight as their chest hit what felt like a wooden floor.

“Shit, sorry! I should’ve warned you- god I’m a fucking idiot,” Renee apologized frantically, helping Bloodhound into a side bent sit on the floor and then sitting on front of them, now holding both of their hands. It seems that the series of events helped the woman act on some sort of panic instinct, but it was obvious that she was still tipsy. Her cloudy eyes had dark bags under them, her face a dark pink and mouth slightly opened. She was looking the hunter up and down slowly as if processing something, and Bloodhound began to fear that she was also starting to put the puzzle together. They held their breath when Renee spoke.

“Are you, like, a guardian angel or something?”

“...What?”

“So you  _ are!  _ Damn, I thought the whole story about some higher spirit watching over everyone and showing up to save them was, well, just a story~” Renee leaned closer onto Bloodhound, wrapping her arms around theirs and leaning her face into the crease of their neck. Her breaths were soft and warm, and the hunter wasn’t sure how to react, “So, where are your wings?”

Bloodhound chuckled, “I am not an angel,  Félagi. Just another person, like you.”

Renee suddenly shot upwards, raising an eyebrow, “Nah nah nah, you can’t fool me. You look like one of those, what do you call it….uh...warrior angel girls. Y’know, with the strong faces and gold armor plates and wings -”

“A valkyrie?”

“Yeah, those! They’re, like, really strong and beautiful and brave. I saw them in one of Bloodhound’s books...” Renee’s voice trailed off, and she suddenly had a saddened expression on her face, “Dammit...I really need to make it up to them. I’m such a jerk for not letting them come with me and Elliot to the bar.”

_ Yeah, you are, asshole...but how can I stay mad at that pretty face? Those beautiful blue eyes? Fjandinn hafi það, I’m done for if I keep this up. _

“Well, if you’re not gonna admit to being an angel, can I at least know the name of my savior?”

This was something Bloodhound definitely hadn’t prepared for. They hadn’t actually thought of a name to let people refer to them as, and sure as hell couldn’t tell Renee their real name, even if she wouldn’t be able to connect it to the legend she knew in the apex games.

“My name is...Raven!”

_ Wow, nice one. That’s totally not suspicious and cliche… _

Renee hummed, “Raven, a pretty name for a pretty woman. It fits you.”

Raven cringed from being called a ‘pretty woman’, but remembered that Renee did actually use their preferred pronouns when speaking about them before. It was usually one of the fans that would use ‘he’ or ‘she’ during interviews, but the hunter would never correct them since it seemed like too much of a hassle after stating what they were officially to the public once or twice. They still had all female parts and  _ looked  _ female for the most part, other than maybe their rough, stern face and and somewhat-built arm muscles and abs.

“Well, thank you,” Raven finally said, taking the compliment with a grain of salt, “However, I would prefer if you did not call me a ‘pretty woman’. I...do not associate myself with male or female pronouns.”

Renee let out a quiet gasp, covering her mouth and shaking her head in shame. Her face had flushed even pinker when she avoided eye contact, “I-I’m sorry, I really didn’t know. M-My friend is actually non-binary as well, so I’m used to using different pronouns, or just your name, if that’s fine,” the voidwalker left out a nervous chuckled, “I really am screwing up a lot tonight, aren’t I? I think I drank too much…”

Raven couldn’t help but laugh. Renee was so cute like this, all flustered and always apologizing when she messed up the smallest of things.

“It’s okay,  Félagi. I’m glad that you are so accepting of who I am. It warms my heart.”

“Félagi…” Renee whispers to herself, but just loud enough that Raven can hear, “My comrade.”

_ Ugh, gotta watch the native tongue… _

Raven looked around the room they were sitting in. It was really dark, and the only sources of light were these faintly glowing star stickers on the roof of the room. It almost felt as if they’d never left the void, if it weren’t for the warmth of the heater humming along in the quiet of the night. They knew where they were, but didn’t even need to ask before Renee answered.

“You probably already recognize me, but, my name is Renee Blasey. The public tends to call me Wraith though. My room at the Syndicate Headquarters was probably the easiest and safest place to teleport us to. The void isn’t usually safe for people to stay inside of for too long unless you have one of these,” she raised her left arm and showed off the device that allowed her to traverse through the void freely, “Stay in there too long, and you might end up going crazy and hearing voices like I did.”

It was meant to come off as a joke with the way she chuckled afterwards, but it didn’t really feel like one.

~~~

_ Shit. Note to self: Stop telling jokes to people you just met. They aren’t used to your dark sense of humor yet. _

Raven didn’t say anything, and Renee couldn’t tell what they were thinking. Maybe bringing them to her room was a mistake. They’d just met after all. Even then, Renee felt like they owe’d them something after they came in and interrupted whatever cruel, sexual punishment she was about to receive from that bar owner. God, she already knew she was going to be hearing shit about it the next morning.

Then she remembered the blow to the nose Raven received.

Renee jumped up from her spot on the floor and reached for the switch on her desk lamp, flicking it on and dimly lighting the room. Then, she looked at Raven’s face, and wasn’t surprised to see the dried blood smeared between their nose and top lip. Thankfully, it didn’t look like a lot, but it did make the girl feel guilty as hell.  _ She  _ should’ve been the one taking a blow to the nose after everything, not angelface over here.

_ Note: Stop calling the person you just met stupid pet names. _

“I’m gonna go grab some medical supplies. I’ll be right back.”

~~~

When Renee slipped out of the metal door that lead into the large hall, Raven immediately pulled out their phone and dialed the last person they called. It only took two rings for the person on the other line to pick up, and they didn’t even give the man a chance to say hello.

“Hyeon, I need you to distract Renee. She’s heading to the medical bay to grab supplies. Just give me enough time to slip back to my room,”

“Wha- wait, what happened at the bar-?”

“Forget the bar, Hyeon! Listen to what I’m telling you now. I already have a bone to pick with your friend, don’t make me hunt you down next.”

A groan left the hacker’s mouth on the other line, “Fine, I’ll do what I can. Try not to take too long,” then, there was a pause of realization, “Hold on, what about El-?”

_ Beep _

~~~

_ Damn, Ajay really keeps too much crap in these tiny lockers to not organize them. The digital lock was already enough of a headache. Why do I need to go through so much trouble to get some damn swabs and peroxide!? _

Renee was searching through yet another metal locker frantically, pushing away endless amounts of bandages, medication, and for whatever reason, shield batteries.  _ Why are these even in the headquarters!? We can’t use them! _

Losing patience, she finally went with a few alcohol swabs that were scattered around near the bottom of the pile of junk. Just seeing the word ‘alcohol’ made Renee sick to her stomach. She didn’t want to go drinking again for a while, or ever, really. At least, not until the Syndicate sent them to yet another planet. She stood up from the cold floor and pushed the locker shut, turning the light off before she exited the medbay.

“Surprised to see you up this late, Renee.”

The voidwalker damn near jumped out of her skin when she heard the voice, pulling her kunai out as she turned to face where it came from. Then, she let out an angry sigh, seeing the hacker leaning against a wall hidden by the shadows.

“Could you  _ not  _ fucking do that? You know I have bad nerves, and my night was already shit as is…”

Tae joon chuckled, standing in front of his fellow legend with his arms crossed, “What’s with the medical supplies?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know-”

“I would, actually,” Tae joon interrupted, making sure that Renee could not go anywhere else, “You went to that bar, The Apocalypse, with Elliot, didn’t you?”

Renee was quickly getting annoyed, “Yeah, so what?”

“Where is he?”

“How would I know!?”

“...Because you were with him? Oh wait, you weren’t, because he got back early and wouldn’t even talk to me-  _ anyone _ about what happened.”

Renee took in a sharp breath, trying to refrain from bringing her kunai to the man’s throat.

“Do not  _ fuck _ with me tonight, Hyeon. I really am not in the mood. Just let me go back to my room so I can help my friend. I really owe them, okay?”

“Your friend? You mean the one that slipped out of your room a few seconds ago? I knew it wasn’t you, but I didn’t want to say anything to them. I could tell they weren’t the threatening type.”

“T-They...what?”

Immediately, Renee pushed past the hacker and made a mad dash down the hallways and to her room. When she reached the long hall where the legends stayed, she saw the light from her lamp leaking out into the darkness of the hall from her wide open door. She ran up to it, breathless, and looked around.

It was empty.

The woman slipped to the ground slowly, crunching the alcohol swabs in her palm. She was so angry — but not at Raven. The person probably wanted nothing to do with her, and now that she thought about it, she’d been acting weirdly flirty in a way. Like, did she seriously call them an angel?

And even after all of that…

She never  _ once _ said thank you. And that’s why she was mad at herself.

Now, the only mission Renee had was finding the mysteriously beautiful hero from the bar. 

Oh, and apologizing to Bloodhound. And possibly Elliot. 

And to deal with all of the shit the Syndicate was going to put her through with what happened that night.

_ Stupid bullshit… _

~~~

Bloodhound flopped down onto their bed, burying their face into their pillow and letting out a dreamy sigh. The night happened way too fast, and honestly, not in the direction they were originally hoping. Tussling with a bar owner definitely wasn’t on the hunter’s lists of things to do when they’re trying to  _ not  _ draw attention to themselves, but the guy damn sure deserved that kick to the gut.

They squeezed their pillow to their chest, the image of Renee when she was pinned against the wall flashing into their head. In that moment, Bloodhound was blinded by rage, and only cared about making that guy pay for the way he touched the woman —god knows what had happened before they’d arrived. 

But now, thinking back at the moment and picturing  **just** Renee made Hound blush beneath their sleeping mask. She looked so hot pushed up against that wall, and her face was all red and almost lewd-looking. Her hair was down and messy, and you could see every breath she took. Hound had wished they were the one pinning Renee against that wall, except in a more intense situation where only the two legends would be enjoying it. The voidwalker pinned underneath the hunter’s body, her beautiful butt in those tights rubbing against their-

_ No, Blóðhundur! Why are you thinking like this all of a sudden? But, by The Allfather, she is a gorgeous woman… _

Today was the first time ever that Bloodhound had made skin contact with Renee. But, just those few moments—holding hands in the void, her arms wrapped around theirs, feeling the woman’s breath when she leaned into their neck—it was enough to leave the hunter wanting even more. They wanted to feel all over Renee’s body. That pale, soft skin that had a perfect shade of pink when she blushed was to die for.

Bloodhound fought the urge to undo all of their clothing and bask in the thoughts of the things they wanted to do to the other legend. It’d been years since Hound felt like...this, and it was surely going to affect the way they acted from now on. They had to be careful. After all, ‘Blóðhundur’ and ‘Raven’ weren’t the same person. One was someone the legend had to be. The other was someone they so badly wanted to be for Renee. There was no way they could pull off being both…

...was there?

“Goodnight, Artur,” the hunter whispered. The raven cawed back in response. They let out a heavy sigh, pulling the string of their lamp and making the room go dark. Before resting for the night, Hound pulled out their phone and messaged Hyeon once more.

Bloodhound let out a sigh of relief, sending one final message before setting their phone down at their bedside and laying their head on their pillow. The moments of them and Renee together were the last things on their mind before they drifted to sleep.

~~~

Renee decided to not partake in the games going on the next day, mainly because she slept so hard that she didn’t hear her alarm or the announcements in HQ go off. Her hangover wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be, thank god for that. Still, she would’ve liked to talk to Bloodhound or Elliot before the games started. She hated to think that what happened last night would’ve put either of them in a bad mental state before the games due to her irrational decisions. It did hurt her a little that no one decided to knock on her door and check on her. Or maybe they did and she just didn’t hear it.

It was depressingly dark outside, gloomy clouds passing over the city and blocking out the sun. If it started to rain outside, the games would end up being cancelled for a couple of days while the ground dried up (apparently the Syndicate was okay with people falling on their ass when slipping on ice and snow, but not mud). 

Renee almost didn’t feel like getting out of bed, but she knew she had to get some stuff done before the others got back. She let out a heavy sigh, leaning up from her twin sized bed and stretching, a groan of pleasure leaving her mouth when a bone in her arm made a small pop. She swung her legs over the side and stood up, realizing that she’d never switched out of the clothes she wore to the bar.

_ Okay, shower first, then go get breakfast. _

She picked up her phone from the side of her bed, checking any recent messages while simultaneously grabbing some sweatpants, a tank top, and clean underwear. There were 3 unread text notifications on the main screen:

**Pathfinder (10:17 AM): Good morning, friend Wraith! Lifeline and I attempted to wake you from your slumber to eat breakfast with us and prepare for this morning’s games, but you would not respond. Please, when you get the chance, let us know how you are doing. Everyone is very worried about you, and we would like to have you at dinner tonight in the dining hall. Thank you! 😊**

_ Aww man, I missed breakfast!? Natalie makes the best pancakes... _

**Blóðhundur (10:30 AM): Góðan daginn, Félagi. I am sorry to hear that you had a rough night at the bar. Just know that you did not hurt my feelings when you chose to not invite me. If you ever want to talk, do not hesitate to knock on my door. The first game will be starting in 30 minutes, so I hope we can speak soon.**

_ Wow, I’ve never seen Hound so open arms to someone before...even after what I did. I really should pay them a visit. _

**Elliot (10:57 AM): hey Renee, we need 2 talk about last night. There’s a lot more I wanna say, but just know that i’m sry. B sure to drink a lot and eat smthn when u wake up, since u missed breakfast.**

**Elliot (10:57 AM): when I said drink a lot, I meant WATER. no alcohol. k thanks.**

_ Well, at least I know he’s willing to talk. It’s gonna be awkward as hell though… And he’s right, I really should get some water. It feels like my lips could crumble into dust at any moment. _

Renee grabbed her bluetooth speaker from her desk, as well as a bottle of water from her mini fridge, and went into the bathroom. While warming the bath water up and adding soap, she plugged in the speaker and sat it on the sink, trying to decide what playlist she felt like listening to while she soaked in the tub. Then, after making a selection, she sat her phone on the sink as the music started.

_ Day to night to morning, keep with me in the moment _

_ I'd let you had I known it, why don't you say so? _

_ Didn't even notice, no punches left to roll with _

_ You got to keep me focused, you want it, say so _

The woman hummed to the beat as she pulled her shirt over her head and threw it on the floor, shaking her hair out of her face in the process. Then, she unclipped her bra and threw it to the side as well, staring at herself in the mirror after doing so.

_ Pssh, Elliot’s missing out… _

She then proceeded to remove the rest of her clothing, throwing them all on different spots on the bathroom floor. Now that the bath bubbles had covered up all of the water, the woman slowly submerged herself below the foamy goodness and sat there. Any tenseness she felt from the night before almost immediately melted away in the hot bath water. Slowly, her eyes closed, and began to think about the person she met the previous night.

_ Raven… I’ll find you if it’s the last thing I do. Hopefully you didn’t go far. _

~~~

Bloodhound was grateful to The Allfather that they hadn’t been placed on Elliot’s team that day. The last thing they felt like doing right now was having to get along with that piece of shit trickster for a whole game. They were so ready to just find that guy in the ring and blast his face off with a peacekeeper within the first 10 seconds, then stab him in the back several times to finish him off. They hoped that Renee would wake up and watch the games from her room, just so she could see it all go down.

In all honesty, things may not have gone exactly as planned with the absolutely terrible loot distribution on World’s Edge, but hopefully Octane and Wattson would be willing to back them up in case they went stupidly aggro while hunting down the trickster.

Bloodhound looked over from where they stood on the drop pad with their teammates, seeing Mirage on the one right next to them. He was on a team with Revenant and Crypto. The hunter knew it was gonna be hard killing Mirage alone. Revenant could give two shits about his teammates, the guy made it clear that he was only after kills and found his teammates useless. Crypto was more or less the problem. As soon as he would hear Mirage call for support, he’d likely be there by his (boy)friend’s side in little time.

Mirage looked over and noticed Bloodhound eyeing him, and he looked somewhat...scared? The hunter had forgotten that the trickster might’ve actually remembered their encounter on the street last night. Now, he had an even bigger reason to hunt the male down. Maybe if he hit him enough times in the head with their axe, he would lose his memory.

The drop pads finally began lowering through the floor of the ship, the cold air whistling as they soared above World’s Edge. The dropship was heading in a straight line from The Tree to Overlook.

“Yo, where we landin?” Octane called out over the loud winds.

“It’s all up to ze jumpmaster!” Wattson replied.

Bloodhound was still staring at Mirage and his team, waiting. Mirage was staring back at them, waiting.

Finally, Mirage and his team dropped straight down and started their glide towards the Epicenter. Bloodhound didn’t hesitate to drop right after, the wind roaring in their ears as the two teams quickly approached the high tier loot area. Wattson and Octane separated from them, taking the bins and truck near the top of the hill. Bloodhound, however, stayed straight on course and landed at the top of the Epicenter along with the other team. He could see two of them land on the hill north of the Epicenter.

Mirage had landed below.

Quickly, Bloodhound scrambled for the nearest gun. There wasn’t much space up top for loot, but luckily, RNG was in their favor. It wasn’t a peacekeeper, but an L-Star and blue armor would do just as good. After grabbing the items, they jumped down from the top of the building and broke their fall with the snow beneath. The hunter could hear the enemy legend still scrambling in the little room at the bottom of the Epicenter, but they still used their scan to strike fear into his heart. He could hear the trickster gasp when his body was outlined in red, rushing inside and aiming their gun forward where their opponent stood.

“Oh, c’mon! There weren’t even any guns down here!”

The two of them stood there, neither of their teams close enough to hear them. Mirage was standing against the wall of the Epicenter, his hands raised above his head while Bloodhound aimed him down.

“You gonna shoot or what?” Mirage was obviously annoyed, a bit of hostility in the tone of his voice, “I saw you checking me out during the launch sequence. Usually I wouldn’t be surprised- no one can get enough of my good looks after all-”

Bloodhound scoffed, rolling their eyes behind their mask. They quickly approached the other legend and pushed the L-Star against his chest, shoving him backwards into the wall, “Do not think I forgot what happened last night. The Allfather was kind enough to bless me with the loot to get this over with swiftly. I will be sure to make every single one of your matches against me a living hell until you atone for what you did to Wraith.”

“Oooh, so that’s why you’re all pissy,” Mirage hummed in response. He slightly pushed down on the gun that was shoved into his chest to release the pressure, giving Bloodhound a smug smile, “Y’know, I don’t get why you’re acting like I’m the bad guy here. I mean, Renee was the one that set the whole thing up,” he paused, shaking his head, “Oh, did I mention she pointed that knife thing at my  _ throat  _ in front of everyone at that bar? If that wasn’t enough to draw their attention, yelling at me at the top of her lungs for me to leave definitely did. I just… I really did not want to be there anymore, okay?”

Bloodhound didn’t move at first, staring Mirage dead in their eyes. Then, in a swift motion, they lowered their weapon reluctantly, letting out a heavy sigh and turning their back to him. The hunter knew that the man was right- all of the blame couldn’t be put on him.

_ Maybe things would’ve gone differently if I’d just stopped Renee from going in the first place… _

“Oh, and about your whole identity thing… You don’t have to worry about that,” Mirage pitched. That certainly caught Bloodhound’s ear, “I mean, I may seem like I have a big mouth, but I keep my fair share of secrets. I mean, the kid has to deal with me knowing all about him, so… I should actually probably stop talking,”

_ Yeah, that’d probably be best for your sake. _

“Anyways, we cool?” Mirage held out his hand, giving Bloodhound that classic friendly grin he was so well known for. The hunter nodded, grabbing his hand and shaking it.

“Sadly, however, I still have to do this.”

Before Mirage could even process the sentence, Bloodhound loaded 20 energy bullets into the trickster’s stomach, knocking him to the ground.

“Wow, you did me dirty…”

“My apologies, Félagi, but I still have a battle to win,” Bloodhound could hear the crunch of approaching footsteps against the snow in the distance, “I will see you on the other side.”

The hunter pulled out their pocket knife and grabbed Mirage by the neck, swinging him around so far that the trickster had no time to react. They then thrusted the blade into his side, piercing through both his clothing and skin. Showing no mercy, they repeated the action two more times, blood spraying from the side of the trickster’s torso as his body went motionless. Bloodhound pushed the corpse into the wall, wiping their knife on the side of their clothing. Then, the deathbox appeared.

“Bloodhound, we need to move to ze next ring! Allons-y!”

The sudden comms caught the legend by surprise, but the woman was right. They’d spent too much time speaking with Mirage at the Epicenter, and the circle was closing quickly. They wondered where Crypto or Revenant were, and why they hadn’t picked up their teammate’s banner, but didn’t stay long enough to figure it out.

“I’m on my way. Don’t stop running.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay y'all, be honest: Should I just give this story multiple chapters? I mean, it's still based off of a prompt, so it's not gonna leave the prompt series. I'd just be breaking the rules since it's not a one shot. I wanna continue it even more.


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